by Alexis Anne
“Is everything okay?” Colt yawned as I slid out of his arms.
“Phone. I’ll be right back.”
My heart plummeted to my feet when I saw that it was Ted and that he’d left a text message.
Baby time. I need you.
Ted and Charley had just moved home a couple of days ago to get ready for Evangeline’s arrival. She was supposed to have at least two more weeks but they’d gone early.
“It’s the baby.” I hit Ted’s message and called him as I looked over at Colt. “It’s early still.”
He was on his feet in a flash, tugging on his pants and shirt as he threw me my dress.
“Lil!” Ted answered after two rings. “They’re taking her into surgery. Emergency C-section.”
“Is it too soon? How’s Evangeline?”
“She’s thirty-five weeks. It’s early but the doctor assures me it will be okay. We need to get her out. I’ll explain when you get here. I need you, Lil.”
And then the line went dead.
I stared at Colt. “I need to go.”
He dropped my clothes and hugged me, pressing my head into his strong chest. “What’s happened, babe?”
I repeated the phone call. “It will be okay, won’t it? Modern medicine and all that?”
“Ted didn’t sound scared?” I shook my head. “Then yes. It will be okay. We just need to get you there.” He practically dressed me as he called Grayson because my hands wouldn’t stop shaking. “We need the car. Grab my go-bag and meet me out front.” He tucked the phone away. “Let’s get to your room and pack an overnight bag, okay? Call who you need to. Let them know you’ll be gone tomorrow.”
I appreciated that he used calm tones and a soothing voice because I was anything but calm.
“Why won’t my hands stop shaking?”
He pressed them between his own. “It’s adrenaline. You’re excited and nervous and it’s flooded your system.”
“I can’t drive like this.” The minute he let me go I’d started shaking again. Stupid human body.
“You don’t have to. I’ll take you.” He didn’t let me respond, pushing me towards the stairs, flicking off lights and unplugging things as we left.
Five minutes later I’d thrown things in a bag. I’m really not sure what. Colt grabbed my underwear after I forgot it and he was the one who made sure my toothbrush made it in with the toiletries. He grabbed my phone charger and then took my hand as he led me out.
Grayson met us at the door. “Would you like me to drive?”
“No, I’ll drive, but I appreciate the offer,” Colt replied, an understanding passing between the two men as Grayson handed him the keys.
Grayson cocked an eyebrow at me, but not in a weird way. If anything he was just trying to figure out what was going on so he could do his job better.
“The baby is early. Something’s wrong,” I blurted out as my emotions started spilling out everywhere. I loved Ted as much as I loved Elizabeth, which meant I loved Charley and Evangeline. If anything happened to any of them . . .
Grayson put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “Tell Ted and Charley I’m thinking of them.” Then he smiled at Colt. “You’ll be in the best hands, Miss Lawrence. Please don’t worry until you know more.”
I sighed. “Worrying is what I do, Grayson.” And I was good at it.
“When has worrying ever fixed anything?” He winked and opened the front door.
CHAPTER 17
“Lily!” Ted yelled down the hallway.
We’d just been ushered into a waiting room. Colt was at my side, his hand threaded through mine.
I waited impatiently while Ted jogged our way. The hospital staff had made it very clear we weren’t to be roaming the halls. Any “funny business” and we’d be tossed out on our backsides.
They took security very seriously.
“Deep breaths, babe,” Colt murmured against my ear.
And then I was crushed in a hug as Ted practically tackled me. “They’re okay.” He squeezed me so hard I worried I wouldn’t be able to draw breath ever again, but I didn’t stop him.
He collapsed onto the plastic chair by the door and dropped his head into his hands. “It all happened so fast. I have never been so scared in all my life.” He glanced up and for the first time I got a good look at his face. His eyes were bleary, lines creased the corners of his eyes and mouth, dark circles haunted the underside of his eyes.
He looked like shit but I would never ever tell him how bad he looked.
“What happened?”
His shoulders sank. “Her doctor’s appointment was on Monday. They noted her blood pressure was a lot higher than the previous appointment, but her urine was okay.” When Colt and I glanced at each other confused, he rolled his eyes. “Preeclampsia. It’s a condition you can get when pregnant and one of the symptoms is protein in the urine.” How very Ted to have learned everything there was to know about his wife’s health. “So they sent us home and told us to pay attention.”
“But something changed?” I prompted. I was trying to be patient but it would be really nice if he’d cut to the chase already.
“It just kept getting higher. She rested, drank water, we laughed at old Justin Timberlake sketches on Saturday Night Live—nothing helped. Her doctor had us come here and her blood pressure was so high they freaked out.” He turned white and ran a hand down his face. “I’ve never seen so many people move so fast. It was chaos. And I couldn’t let Charley see how scared I was.”
That’s why he called me. He could be scared with me. “You did good, Ted.”
“I don’t know how you do it everyday.”
“What?”
He bugged his eyes at me. “Acting. I did it for an hour and I’m exhausted.”
Colt chuckled beside me, resting his hand on the small of my back and rubbing comforting circles. “And how is the baby?”
Ted’s whole face lit up. “Evangeline Lillian Lowe was born at 10:42 p.m. She weighs seven pounds exactly and is perfect in every way, just like her mother and godmother.”
Hot tears stung my eyes. “You gave her my name?”
He took my hand and beamed up at me with a megawatt smile. “You were my guardian angel when I needed it. I can think of no better woman to watch over my daughter.”
The ugly tears started right about then. “How’s Charley?” I tried to wipe the wetness from my face but it just kept coming. Colt disappeared for a moment and I realized why when several tissues were pressed into my hands.
“They did an emergency C-section. She’s groggy and she’s pissed. She’ll be on bed rest and restrictions for six weeks.”
I could only imagine being restricted was going to drive Charley nuts. “And her blood pressure?”
He grimaced. “It’s still a mess but they’re doing everything they can. She’s on medication to lower it. And since Angie was only thirty-five weeks they’re keeping her in the nursery tonight for monitoring, but everything looks good.”
“That means you can get some sleep, Daddy.”
He looked at me like I was nuts. “You think I’m going to sleep?”
“You should. You’ve got a lot to take care of and this may be your last chance to sleep for a while.”
He shook his head as if he knew something I didn’t. “I’ll be by her side tonight. If I sleep, I sleep. If I don’t, well at least I’m with the woman I love. I’ll take care of them no matter what.”
Said like a true Papa Bear. “At least let us stay with her while you run home for clothes. Maybe stop and have a good dinner and collect yourself. You said acting was hard.”
He narrowed his eyes into slits. “Deal. She’s sleeping anyway, but I’ll feel better knowing you’re here. I’ll just check on her and tell the staff you’re taking my place. I’ve already terrorized them so they should be good about following orders the way I like.”
Leave it to Ted to upset an entire hospital floor and force them to bend to his will.
Fifte
en minutes later Ted waved goodbye and we quietly moved down the hall back to the waiting room after checking that Charley was resting comfortably.
“She looks exhausted,” Colt murmured. “I can’t imagine she’ll be awake any time soon.”
I agreed, which was why I felt safe sitting in the waiting room where we could actually talk. “Thank you for driving me. I don’t think I could have done it in the state I was in.”
“It was never a question. You needed me and I was more than happy to drive you.” He slipped his hand into mine.
It was weird being back in LA. Technically it was my home but I wasn’t here all that often. Truth be told, I avoided it unless Ted was here. There were too many bad memories, too many people I didn’t want to see. The air felt different and I realized I was on high alert, my shield up and ready to protect me from enemy combatants, which was silly since we were in a hospital.
Except that I lived in an exceptionally small world.
“I’m keeping you from work.”
He shrugged. “One day won’t kill me. I can check in from here and most things can wait.” He pulled me into his body and slid a hand behind my neck. “There’s no place I’d rather be.” Then he kissed me. A soft kiss that started at our lips and zinged straight down to my toes.
The four-hour car ride had not been great for discussions of family or past transgressions. I was too nervous and I didn’t think either of us was ready for more. We were still in recovery from the roller coaster of deciding to be together coupled with his confessions. So instead Colt entertained me with stories of growing up on the ranch, of backpacking with his father and cliff diving with his sister.
I was high on his warm fuzzy childhood memories when one of mine came crashing back into my life.
“Well, well, well, if it isn’t Lily Lawrence.”
I spun toward the familiar voice and my stomach twisted. Meredith Brown. If I had a list of people I never wanted to see again, I’d put her somewhere in the top ten. Not only did she help make high school miserable but, every time I’d seen her since, she was mean to me.
Why the hell was she in a maternity waiting room? “Meredith?”
“It’s so good to see you.”
Liar.
“I heard Ted is a father. How very . . . strange.” Her red lips twisted into a wry smile. Meredith and I were the same age and height, but she was dark. Black hair and eyes, golden skin, and a perfect white smile. We went to school together with Ted. Her family was nearly as ingrained in the business as mine.
Nearly, but not quite.
“He is. And why are you here?”
Her eyes glittered. I knew what that meant in high school and I sure as hell hoped it didn’t mean the same thing as adults. As a teenager I ignored her. As an adult, I couldn’t make that promise. And I was pretty sure hospitals frowned upon violence in a waiting room.
“Marcy is a mom now.” Marcy was her older sister, a comedic actress known for her character roles. “You’ve really been ignoring the news, haven’t you?” She gave a forced, fake laugh. “Oh, but you would, wouldn’t you? Being a headliner yourself.”
Yeah, my claws came out after that one, but luckily so did Colt’s. He pulled me backward with his left hand, my back to his hip, his hand protectively holding me to him. “Colt Landry.” He stuck out his right hand, inserting himself forcefully between us.
Smart man.
Meredith raked her eyes over him like a piece of meat. “Well aren’t you handsome,” she purred, taking his hand. “Another friend, Lil? Or is this one unfortunate enough to be your boyfriend?”
She always hated what Ted and I had. Well, she would. She had a crush on poor Ted for years. Chased him until college when he finally escaped long enough to grow the balls to tell her to fuck off.
“That’s none of your business,” Colt growled, his hand tightening on my hip.
“Oh, he is, isn’t he? Poor, poor man.” She covered her mouth and shook her head sadly. Then her eyes locked on him in a way I really didn’t like. “Landry? As in Benjamin Landry?”
Colt stiffened. “He was my great grandfather, yes.”
Her gaze narrowed, turned predatory. Meredith did always like a rich man with connections to play with. She got what she could and moved on like a locust.
“Well, I hope the Landry family is ready for all the bad press you’ll get from associating with her.”
It was like a punch to the gut. One I wanted to react to but couldn’t because she was right. He would get bad press. It wasn’t fair but it was what would happen if it got out I was anything more than an actress in a movie being filmed on his property.
“My family and my company are my concern. As is my relationship with Lily.” The air vibrated with his anger, leaving no question as to how he felt about Meredith’s accusations.
She wiped the bitchy look off her face and replaced it with her business face. I almost preferred it when she was being catty. At least it was sincere.
“I hope the movie goes well for you, Lily. This may be your last chance to prove once and for all that you’re a shitty actress from a trashy family. Give Ted my regards.”
CHAPTER 18
“You saw her, didn’t you?” Ted asked the minute he saw how grumpy I was being.
“Who?”
Even Colt didn’t buy my act. He groaned. “What does playing dumb accomplish? Yes, we saw that bitch Meredith and my biggest regret is that I didn’t throw her out on her backside with my own bare hands.”
God, he was hot when he was in protective mode.
Ted gave him a thumbs up. “I’m sorry I forgot to tell you.”
“It’s okay,” I assured him. “You’ve been a bit preoccupied.”
Everyone thinks LA is this huge city of anonymity, but I think it’s true whether you live in a small town or metropolis, your circle is your circle and you see the same people when you tread the same ground.
“How bad was it?” He set down his bag in the corner of the room. Charley had been awake for about fifteen minutes and was eating her prescribed snack of blandness.
“She reminded me she hates me, called me a shitty actress, and said things about my family.”
“Blech.” Charley made a face. “That was about Meredith, not the food, by the way. And you are a brilliant actress.”
“I appreciate that.” Because the rest was completely true. “So, they’re going to kick us out now but we’ll be back when visiting hours start in the morning. Unfortunately we’ll have to hit the road right after we meet my goddaughter.”
Charley waved me off. “You have a schedule. I get it. Besides, that baby will be doing nothing but sleeping and mooching off me for the next three months. I promise you won’t be missing anything.”
I hugged Ted. “You doing better now?”
“You better believe it. Seeing your smile changed everything, Princess.”
Colt tugged me away. “We should go.”
Ted grinned. “I see things are progressing between you two. If I didn’t know better I’d say you just got a little jealous.” Then he winked and I thought Colt was going to die.
“Good night Theodore. Sleep tight.”
* * *
IT WAS weird having Colt in my apartment. It was weird being in my apartment at all, but with Colt there too? Well it was pretty much an out-of-body experience.
So was the way he woke me up.
After a huge breakfast that was totally necessary to refuel after all our exercise, we met Evangeline. She was the cutest little bundle of squished skin I’d ever seen. I loved her instantly and was already planning ways to spoil her.
Then we were back on the road north with Colt at the wheel.
“So Meredith? You want to talk about that?” He glanced at me from the side of his sunglasses. He was almost relaxed after an evening away. His shoulder tension was gone, his smile was back, he even had the nurses laughing at the hospital. It made my heart so full it wanted to burst.
It made i
t easier to tell him the things that scared me. “My grandmother was a great actress. One of the best. She won Oscars, was a guest of dignitaries the world over, she was truly great.” I stared out the window at the passing scenery. “She had a kind soul and loved all forms of art. She had masterpieces that hung in her house. Famous musicians would come play at her parties. She wrote poetry.”
I jumped when Colt set his hand on my leg. “She sounds amazing.”
“She was. She died at sixty-two so I didn’t get to know her. Liz remembers her.” I was always jealous of that. But at least we had her memoire. I’d read it at least a dozen times, sitting up with my sister to ask her questions. “My mom is her opposite. I really can’t explain why she is the way she is. Cybil drinks up fame the way others drink up water. She doesn’t particularly care about working hard or doing good, just whether it will get her some attention. She’s made an empire out of the reality television phenomenon.”
It wasn’t fun being a teenager with a mother on the cover of every tabloid.
“I’ve heard of her, but never watched anything.” He stole another glance. “I assume you’re about to tell me why Meredith called you trash since that doesn’t particularly go hand in hand with artistic royalty.”
“My childhood was anything but.” I closed my eyes wishing I didn’t see the memories. “My father is just as bad and they feed off each other. They’re toxic. They use and abuse. Our house was always filled with strangers, they took advantage of any opportunity that might present itself, even when it was clearly a scam. That’s how they managed to burn through my grandmother’s entire fortune. They forced Elizabeth to work so they could live off of her instead. It was a mess.”
His hand tightened around my leg, but I didn’t think he was aware of it. He was lost in thought, staring out at the road, his jaw ticking. “I’m sorry to hear that.”
I wanted that tension to melt away. It was sweet that he was upset on my behalf, but it wasn’t necessary. So I ran my fingers along his jaw. “It could have been much worse. I’m okay.”
